Sweet Potato "chips"

Updated: May 19

Roasted sweet potato “chips” are one of my favorite sides for any meal. They’re so easy that you won’t really need a “recipe” after making them once! But I will give you some basic instructions and tips below. As you can see here, I enjoyed them for breakfast with a fried pastured egg, mixed green salad, and pastured bacon. I made the mixed green salad with the dressing and toppings from my “nutty citrus kale salad” recipe which can be found on the blog as well.

Sweet potatoes really are powerful, nutrient dense root vegetables. It’s easy to characterize them as simply a starch or high carb foods...which technically they are, but they are much more than just carbohydrates. They’re a great source of beta-carotene, which is partially converted and absorbed as Vitamin A in the body. Because beta-carotene is a fat soluble micronutrient, consuming fat with sweet potatoes will optimize absorption -like the avocado oil used in the recipe! 😊

Sweet potatoes also contain Vitamin C, Manganese, Copper, and B-vitamins, among others. Once cooked then cooled, sweet potatoes become a resistant starch or prebiotic fiber, which incurs many benefits such as improved insulin sensitivity and reduced blood glucose response. This only paints a very small picture of their benefits...but isn’t food amazing?! Sweet potatoes ARE nutrient dense but like any food, I don’t recommend loading up on only one thing! Incorporate a variety of vegetables into your diet, not just root veggies! If you eat the same things over and over, you are missing out on nutrients that food variety provides. Happy eating!

*I like to prepare four sweet potatoes at once so we can eat them throughout the week, but you can certainly decrease this amount!

**If you don’t have avocado oil spray, just brush avocado oil on the sweet potatoes (using a marinade brush!)

Instructions

-Preheat oven to 400

-Thinly slice sweet potatoes into "coins" that are about a ~1/8 inch thick. You can also slice with a mandolin. Aim for consistency so the potatoes cook evenly.

-Lay out sweet potatoes on a baking sheet, and lightly and evenly spray with avocado oil and season with salt. Flip the sweet potatoes and spray with avocado oil, season with salt and lightly season with cayenne (just one side). Do not season with dried garlic and onion yet.

-Put two pans of sweet potatoes in the oven together, and set the time for 30 mins. After 30 mins, check the potatoes. On the bottom side that's touching the pan, there should be a light brown crisp; if they aren't there yet, set the time for another 5-10 minutes and keep cooking! Flip the potatoes, and set the timer for another 10-15 mins.

-Use your judgement and carefully watch the potatoes! Depending on what rack (top or bottom) the potatoes are on and how your particular oven cooks, you will have to determine when your potatoes are crispy enough! In my oven the bottom rack always cooks more quickly, so I take those out first. The potatoes should bake for approximately 45 - 55 minutes total, but the variation depends on your oven and slice thickness. :)

-Once your sweet potatoes are lightly golden brown on each side, remove them from the oven and quickly season them with dried garlic and onion powder.

-If you are preparing these to eat for another time, remember you can undercook them slightly! Reheat them in a toaster oven and crisp them right up!